Visiting the small Catholic communities in Bulgaria and North Macedonia offered an opportunity to encourage the faithful to remember God’s miracle of being able to feed a multitude with just a few loaves and fishes, Pope Francis said.

The Maria Stein Shrine of the Holy Relics in Ohio is home to more than 1,153 relics, ranging from slivers of Christ’s cross and part of St. Joseph’s tunic to a piece of St. Maximilian Kolbe’s habit and a snippet of hair from St. Teresa of Kolkata.

On Sept. 4, Pope Francis gave the Church an incredible gift of a new saint: St. Teresa of Kolkata — arguably one of the world’s most famous people when she died. Besides receiving the Nobel Peace Prize and honorary degrees from places like Harvard, she also opened houses to serve the poor on every continent and founded a new religious community that today numbers more than 5,000 and is still growing.

With a large tapestry bearing the portrait of the woman known as the “Saint of the Gutters” suspended above him, Pope Francis proclaimed the sainthood of Mother Teresa of Kolkata, hailing her courage and love for the poor.

It was 2004, and I was volunteering. Sister Edward would assign me tasks, and I never knew what to expect. There were days of washing dishes and days of cleaning bedrooms. There was one wonderful thing; my friend, Ellie, was the best at laundry. Since we were volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity, there were no washing machines. Ellie did it all by hand, and I never begrudged her this.